Disability News Japan Podcast: ‘A Personal Matter’ Author Kenzaburo Oe Dies & ‘No Mask Day’

By Barrier Free Japan

March 14 2023

JAPAN – Kenzaburo Oe, regarded as one of Japan’s leading contemporary novelists and the second Japanese person to win the Nobel Prize in literature, died on March 3, his publisher, Kodansha, announced in a statement Monday. He was 88.

A private funeral was held for his family, and a separate farewell ceremony is planned for later on.

Oe won the Nobel Prize in 1994 as he was working on the “A Flaming Green Tree” trilogy. The prize was awarded for works including the novel “A Personal Matter” — which was dedicated to his son, the composer Hikari Oe — solidifying his place in contemporary literature.

Hikari Ōe was born and developmentally disabled. Doctors tried to convince his parents to let their son die, but they refused to do so. Even after an operation, Ōe remained visually impaired, developmentally disabled and epileptic, with limited physical coordination.

Episode Notes: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2023/03/13/national/kenzaburo-oe-obit/